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Hau Family

As the wedding of our daughter approaches, I’m reminded of this wonderful picture from my parents wedding album. My grandpa was certainly lighter in the wallet after the big event! I certainly understand that now! I know he would have loved our festivities this weekend.

I was recently given a copy of a photo of my 2nd great grandmother, Kathrine (Tuepper) Hau. I had only seen one picture of her and that was taken when she was elderly. This new photo was taken when she was a much younger woman.

I was lucky enough, last week, to come into contact with a cousin who found my tree on Ancestry.com. She and I are 3rd cousins and we both descend from Wilhelm Hau and Kathrine Tuepper.

I have known about Wilhelm for a long time. He was born in 1842 in Prussia. He became a wealthy land owner and had tenant farms. According to stories, he served in the Prussian army and had a crippled little finger. He played the violin and was a choir director. Because of political reasons, Wilhelm immigrated to the United States, probably in the mid-1860’s, and settled in Russell Twp., Sheboygan Co., WI. There, he farmed and was the choir master at St. Joe Catholic Church.

Wilhelm died in 1884, at the age of 42. I haven’t yet been able determine how he died. He and Kathrine had 9 children.

I’ve never known what Wilhelm looked like – until now! My new newly-found cousin has a picture of him and emailed it to me today. I can now put a face to my 3rd great grandfather.

Early on in the United States’ involvement in WWI, non-naturalized citizens, or “enemy aliens”, were required to register with U.S. authorities in the interest of national security. A presidential proclamation on November 16, 1917 included all non-citizen males over the age of 14, and their wives, even those women born in the United States but married to non-citizens. The registration focused primarily on non-citizen German residents, but included Italians and other nationalities, as well. The information derived from this registration included immigration, birth and parentage, names of family members, address, occupation and employer; residents were also asked if they were sympathetic to the enemy and the names of any relatives serving in enemy forces. Registrations included a physical description, fingerprints and a photograph. An act of Congress on 16 April 1918 changed the definition of “alien enemy” to include women age 14 and older, and a presidential proclamation followed on April 19, 1918.

My 2nd great grandmother, Maria Katherine Michels, was born in Germany on April 13, 1842. She came to the United State in 1856 and, according to the 1920 US Census, became a naturalized citizen in 1869. On June 19, 1860, Maria married Anton Fuhrmann. He was also born in Germany and became a citizen – this according to the 1910 Census.

Once an “enemy alien” had registered, “After the date fixed by the Attorney General for such registration, an alien enemy shall not be found within the limits of the United States, its territories or possessions, without having his registration card on his person.” Penalties for not carrying the card could include imprisonment.

This is the “Registration Card of Alien Female” issued to Maria K. Fuhrmann on June 25, 1918. What is a little confusing to me is that, according to the census, both she and Anton were naturalized citizens. If this was the case, I don’t believe she was required to register. But, then again, the census could be wrong.

Marie and Anton were farmers in Marshfield Township, Fond du lac Co., WI. After Anton died in 1912, Marie moved to the city of Fond du Lac to live with 3 of her children. She passed away in 1923 and is buried in Johnsburg, WI.

While trying to fill in some empty gaps in my tree, I came across this interesting information about my 2nd cousin, Esther (Hau) Anderson, and her husband, James. Esther was born in Fond du Lac, WI in 1904. She is listed in the 1925 and 1927 Racine, WI city directories as a teacher. She married James Roy Anderson, who was born in Racine.

What I discovered was that James Roy Anderson was a Brigadier General during WWII. He and Esther are listed in the 1930 US Census as living in the Schofield Barracks in Honolulu. He graduated from the United States Military Academy in 1926, served at various Army installations, and obtained his wings at Kelly Field, Texas, in 1936. During 1943-1944 he served on the War Department General Staff. In January 1945, General Andersen was assigned to HQ AAF, Pacific Ocean Area.

General Anderson was declared killed in action after an aircraft accident on 26 February 1945 over the Pacific Ocean, near Kwajalein Island, en route to Hawaii. Andersen Air Force Base, in the United States territory Guam is named in his honor.